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Reviews recent lessons about decentralized governance and implications for future development programs and policies.
A Brookings Institution Press and Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation publication The trend toward greater decentralization of governance activities, now accepted as commonplace in the West, has become a worldwide movement. This international development—largely a product of globalization and democratization—is clearly one of the key factors reshaping economic, political, and social conditions throughout the world. Rather than the top-down, centralized decisionmaking that characterized communist economies and Third World dictatorships in the twentieth century, today's world demands flexibility, adaptability, and the autonomy to bring those qualities to bear. In this thought-provoking book, the first in a new series on Innovations in Governance, experts in government and public management trace the evolution and performance of decentralization concepts, from the transfer of authority within government to the sharing of power, authority, and responsibilities among broader governance institutions. This movement is not limited to national government—it also affects subnational governments, NGOs, private corporations, and even civil associations. The contributors assess the emerging concepts of decentralization (e.g., devolution, empowerment, capacity building, and democratic governance). They detail the factors driving the movement, including political changes such as the fall of the Iron Curtain and the ascendance of democracy; economic factors such as globalization and outsourcing; and technological advances (e.g. increased information technology and electronic commerce). Their analysis covers many different contexts and regions. For example, William Ascher of Claremont McKenna College chronicles how decentralization concepts are playing out in natural resources policy, while Kadmeil Wekwete (United Nations) outlines the specific challenges to decentralizing governance in sub-Saharan Africa. In each case, contributors explore the objectives of a decentralizing strategy as well as the benefits and difficulties that will likely result.
This volume brings together a multidisciplinary group of scholars from diverse fields including computer science, engineering, archival science, law, business, psychology, economics, medicine and more to discuss the trade-offs between different “layers” in designing the use of blockchain/Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) for social trust, trust in data and records, and trust in systems. Blockchain technology has emerged as a solution to the problem of trust in data and records, as well as trust in social, political and economic institutions, due to its profound potential as a digital trust infrastructure. Blockchain is a DLT in which confirmed and validated sets of transactions are stored in blocks that are chained together to make tampering more difficult and render records immutable. This book is dedicated to exploring and disseminating the latest findings on the relationships between socio-political and economic data, record-keeping, and technical aspects of blockchain.
Decentralized Control of Complex Systems
Is sewer-based wastewater treatment really the optimal technical solution in urban water management? This paradigm is increasingly being questioned. Growing water scarcity and the insight that water will be an important limiting factor for the quality of urban life are main drivers for new approaches in wastewater management. Source Separation and Decentralization for Wastewater Management sets up a comprehensive view of the resources involved in urban water management. It explores the potential of source separation and decentralization to provide viable alternatives to sewer-based urban water management. During the 1990s, several research groups started working on source-separating technologies for wastewater treatment. Source separation was not new, but had only been propagated as a cheap and environmentally friendly technology for the poor. The novelty was the discussion whether source separation could be a sustainable alternative to existing end-of-pipe systems, even in urban areas and industrialized countries. Since then, sustainable resource management and many different source-separating technologies have been investigated. The theoretical framework and also possible technologies have now developed to a more mature state. At the same time, many interesting technologies to process combined or concentrated wastewaters have evolved, which are equally suited for the treatment of source-separated domestic wastewater. The book presents a comprehensive view of the state of the art of source separation and decentralization. It discusses the technical possibilities and practical experience with source separation in different countries around the world. The area is in rapid development, but many of the fundamental insights presented in this book will stay valid. Source Separation and Decentralization for Wastewater Management is intended for all professionals and researchers interested in wastewater management, whether or not they are familiar with source separation. Editors: Tove A. Larsen, Kai M. Udert and Judit Lienert, Eawag - Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Switzerland. Contributors: Yuval Alfiya, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Prof. Dr. M. Bruce Beck, University of Georgia, Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources; Dr. Christian Binz, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Innovation Research in Utility Sectors (Cirus); Prof. em. Dr. Markus Boller, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Department of Urban Water Management (SWW); Prof. Dr. Eran Friedler, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Zenah Bradford-Hartke, The University of New South Wales, School of Chemical Engineering and UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology; Dr. Shelley Brown-Malker, Very Small Particle Company Ltd; Bert Bundervoet, Ghent University, Laboratory Microbial Ecology and Technology (LabMET); Prof. Dr. David Butler, University of Exeter, Centre for Water Systems; Dr. Christopher A. Buzie, Hamburg University of Technology, Institute of Wastewater Management and Water Protection; Dr. Dana Cordell, University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF); Dr. Vasileios Diamantis, Democritus University of Thrace, Department of Environmental Engineering; Prof. Dr. Jan Willem Erisman, Louis Bolk Institute; VU University Amsterdam, Department of Earth Sciences; Barbara Evans, University of Leeds, School of Civil Engineering; Prof. Dr. Malin Falkenmark, Stockholm International Water Institute; Dr. Ted Gardner, Central Queensland University, Institute for Resource Industries and Sustainability; Dr. Heiko Gebauer, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Innovation Research in Utility Sectors (Cirus); Prof. em. Dr. Willi Gujer, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETHZ), Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering (BAUG); Prof. Dr. Bruce Jefferson, Cranfield University, Cranfield Water Science Institute; Prof. Dr. Paul Jeffrey, Cranfield University, Cranfield Water Science Institute; Sarina Jenni, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Process Engineering Department (Eng); Prof. Dr. Håkan Jönsson, SLU - Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Energy and Technology; Prof. Dr. Ïsik Kabdasli, Ïstanbul Technical University, Civil Engineering Faculty; Prof. Dr. Jörg Keller, The University of Queensland, Advanced Water Management Centre (AWMC); Prof. Dr. Klaus Kömmerer, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Institute of Sustainable and Environmental Chemistry; Dr. Katarzyna Kujawa-Roeleveld, Wageningen University, Agrotechnology and Food Sciences Group; Dr. Tove A. Larsen, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Department of Urban Water Management (SWW); Michele Laureni, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Process Engineering Department (Eng); Prof. Dr. Gregory Leslie, The University of New South Wales, School of Chemical Engineering and UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology; Dr. Harold Leverenz, University of California at Davis, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Dr. Judit Lienert, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Department of Environmental Social Sciences (ESS); Prof. Dr. Jürg Londong, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Department of Urban Water Management and Sanitation; Dr. Christoph Lüthi, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries (Sandec); Prof. Dr. Max Maurer, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Department of Urban Water Management (SWW); Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETHZ), Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering; Prof. em. Dr. Gustaf Olsson, Lund University, Department of Measurement Technology and Industrial Electrical Engineering (MIE); Prof. Dr. Ralf Otterpohl, Hamburg University of Technology, Institute of Wastewater Management and Water Protection; Dr. Bert Palsma, STOWA, Dutch Foundation for Applied Water Research; Dr. Arne R. Panesar, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH; Prof. Dr. Bruce E. Rittmann, Arizona State University, Swette Center for Environmental Biotechnology; Prof. Dr. Hansruedi Siegrist, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Process Engineering Department (Eng); Dr. Ashok Sharma, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia, Land and Water Division; Prof. Dr. Thor Axel Stenström, Stockholm Environment Institute, Bioresources Group; Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Department of Mathematical Science and Technology; Dr. Eckhard Störmer, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Innovation Research in Utility Sectors (Cirus); Bjartur Swart, STOWA, Dutch Foundation for Applied Water Research; MWH North Europe; Prof. em. Dr. George Tchobanoglous, University of California at Davis, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Elizabeth Tilley, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Department of Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries (Sandec); Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich (ETHZ), Centre for Development and Cooperation (NADEL); Prof. Dr. Bernhard Truffer, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology; Innovation Research in Utility Sectors (Cirus); Prof. Dr. Olcay Tünay, Ïstanbul Technical University, Civil Engineering Faculty; Dr. Kai M. Udert, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Process Engineering Department (Eng); Prof. em. Dr. Willy Verstraete, Ghent University, Laboratory Microbial Ecology and Technology (LabMET); Prof. Dr. Björn Vinnerås, SLU - Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Energy and Technology; Prof. Dr. Urs von Gunten, Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Department of Water Resources and Drinking Water (W+T); Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL),School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering (ENAC); Prof. em. Dr. Peter A. Wilderer, Technische Universität München, Institute for Advanced Study; Prof. Dr. Jun Xia, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Center for Water Resources Research and Key Laboratory of Water Cycle and Related Surface Processes; Prof. Dr. Grietje Zeeman, Wageningen University, Agrotechnology and Food Sciences Group
A large-scale system is composed of several interconnected subsystems. For such a system it is often desired to have some form of decentralization in the control structure, since it is typically not realistic to assume that all output measurements can be transmitted to every local control station. Problems of this kind can appear in electric power systems, communication networks, large space structures, robotic systems, economic systems, and traffic networks, to name only a few. Typical large-scale control systems have several local control stations which observe only local outputs and control only local inputs. All controllers are involved, however, in the control operation of the overall system. The focus of this book is on the efficient control of interconnected systems, and it presents systems analysis and controller synthesis techniques using a variety of methods. A systematic study of multi-input, multi-output systems is carried out and illustrative examples are given to clarify the ideas.
This book introduces multiagent planning under uncertainty as formalized by decentralized partially observable Markov decision processes (Dec-POMDPs). The intended audience is researchers and graduate students working in the fields of artificial intelligence related to sequential decision making: reinforcement learning, decision-theoretic planning for single agents, classical multiagent planning, decentralized control, and operations research.
This book analyzes the reasons for lackluster performance selected Latin American countries in mobilizing subnational own-source revenues and explores policy options to increase these revenues as efficiently and equitably as possible. Seven case studies--Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela--span a wide range of characteristics, including federal and unitary countries, different geographical sizes, levels of economic development, and degrees of revenue decentralization. In this book, subnational governments include both intermediate and local levels of government, which are distinguished in the case studies. Together, the case studies provide a reasonably representative picture of the challenges faced throughout Latin America in mobilizing subnational own-source revenues in a manner that supports equitable growth.
In Self-Sovereign Identity: Decentralized digital identity and verifiable credentials, you’ll learn how SSI empowers us to receive digitally-signed credentials, store them in private wallets, and securely prove our online identities. Summary In a world of changing privacy regulations, identity theft, and online anonymity, identity is a precious and complex concept. Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) is a set of technologies that move control of digital identity from third party “identity providers” directly to individuals, and it promises to be one of the most important trends for the coming decades. Personal data experts Drummond Reed and Alex Preukschat lay out a roadmap for a future of personal sovereignty powered by the Blockchain and cryptography. Cutting through technical jargon with dozens of practical cases, it presents a clear and compelling argument for why SSI is a paradigm shift, and how you can be ready to be prepared for it. About the technology Trust on the internet is at an all-time low. Large corporations and institutions control our personal data because we’ve never had a simple, safe, strong way to prove who we are online. Self-sovereign identity (SSI) changes all that. About the book In Self-Sovereign Identity: Decentralized digital identity and verifiable credentials, you’ll learn how SSI empowers us to receive digitally-signed credentials, store them in private wallets, and securely prove our online identities. It combines a clear, jargon-free introduction to this blockchain-inspired paradigm shift with interesting essays written by its leading practitioners. Whether for property transfer, ebanking, frictionless travel, or personalized services, the SSI model for digital trust will reshape our collective future. What's inside The architecture of SSI software and services The technical, legal, and governance concepts behind SSI How SSI affects global business industry-by-industry Emerging standards for SSI About the reader For technology and business readers. No prior SSI, cryptography, or blockchain experience required. About the authors Drummond Reed is the Chief Trust Officer at Evernym, a technology leader in SSI. Alex Preukschat is the co-founder of SSIMeetup.org and AlianzaBlockchain.org. Table of Contents PART 1: AN INTRODUCTION TO SSI 1 Why the internet is missing an identity layer—and why SSI can finally provide one 2 The basic building blocks of SSI 3 Example scenarios showing how SSI works 4 SSI Scorecard: Major features and benefits of SSI PART 2: SSI TECHNOLOGY 5 SSI architecture: The big picture 6 Basic cryptography techniques for SSI 7 Verifiable credentials 8 Decentralized identifiers 9 Digital wallets and digital agents 10 Decentralized key management 11 SSI governance frameworks PART 3: DECENTRALIZATION AS A MODEL FOR LIFE 12 How open source software helps you control your self-sovereign identity 13 Cypherpunks: The origin of decentralization 14 Decentralized identity for a peaceful society 15 Belief systems as drivers for technology choices in decentralization 16 The origins of the SSI community 17 Identity is money PART 4: HOW SSI WILL CHANGE YOUR BUSINESS 18 Explaining the value of SSI to business 19 The Internet of Things opportunity 20 Animal care and guardianship just became crystal clear 21 Open democracy, voting, and SSI 22 Healthcare supply chain powered by SSI 23 Canada: Enabling self-sovereign identity 24 From eIDAS to SSI in the European Union